In 1946 Al Capp held the now infamous contest to see who could conjure the true image of the world's ugliest woman, Lena Hyena from Lower Slobbovia. Amongst the 500,000 + submissions was this ghastly beaut by Carl Barks. The, ahem, judges for this contest were three of the worlds ugliest men: Salvador Dali, Boris Karloff and Frank Sinatra and as you may know, they aptly awarded Basil Wolverton's warped rendering "The Champ." Here we have Lena by Basil Wolverton as colored by Jim Woodring from Wolvertoons. I think it's worth noting and more than a coincidence that Carl Barks, Basil Wolverton…
The Quiet Rrriot: Spotlight on Nikki McClure
On Saturday, July 9th, the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery debuts our exhibit The Quiet Rrriot: Visual Artists from the Riot Grrrl Movement. We're celebrating the long-awaited reissue of Megan Kelso's incredible collection Queen of the Black Black, and we're also featuring two of her contemporaries from the '90s Olympia-scene, Nikki McClure and Stella Marrs. Yesterday, we took a closer look at Stella's art, and today, we're gonna talk about Nikki! Nikki and Megan were in the same year at the infamous Evergreen State College, and you can see the Olympia-influence in both of their work. Nikki's artwork graced the covers…
Video: Jim Woodring at Elliott Bay Book Co.
Jim Woodring's Congress of the Animals by gavlees For those who couldn't make it to Jim Woodring's slideshow talk about his new graphic novel Congress of the Animals at Elliott Bay Book Company last week, here's video of the whole presentation, shot by our own Ian Burns and hosted by our good pal Gavin Lees. (Pardon the brief commercial message.) Gavin provides some thoughtful comments on the talk over at his Graphic Eye blog. The insight Jim provides into his work is fascinating, there are some previously-unseen preparatory sketches included in the slideshow, and Jim left us all wanting more…
We get letters
From the ol' mailbag.
Grrrl Heroes Megan Kelso, Nikki McClure & Stella Marrs at Fantagraphics Bookstore
Join us this Saturday, July 9 from 6:00 to 9:00 PM for "The Quiet Rrriot," an examination of the Riot Grrrl zine scene featuring original art, prints, and products by Megan Kelso, Nikki McClure and Stella Marrs. This exhibition marks the debut of the new edition of Queen of the Black Black, short stories from Kelso’s seminal comix zine Girlhero. Kelso and McClure will discuss their work in the context of Olympia’s Riot Grrrl movement at 7:00 PM, followed by a book signing and reception. Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery is located at 1201 S, Vale Street (at Airport Way S.)…
Follow-up to Newave seeking submissions
For those wondering whether there would be a follow-up to our well-received 2010 anthology Newave! The Underground Mini-Comix of the 1980s, good news! Editor Michael Dowers is now seeking submissions for two more volumes with a wider chronological reach. Here's the announcement, as posted at the mini-comics community site Poopsheet Foundation: This series will cover mini comics from the dawn of time (early 70's) to the present. Since Newave has already been covered, the main focus will be on the 1990's to the present although earlier minis will be covered too. The books will be the same size (only more…
Things to See: fun with Nate Neal’s Sanctuary
Nate Neal presents two stories related to his graphic novel The Sanctuary in the "Comix-O-Matic" video format: the one-pager "Lor Mok Kuri," and "Cha-Ul Nu Mon-Mon," the prequel story which appears in Mome Vol. 21. Lor Mok Kuri from Nate Neal on Vimeo. Cha-Ul Nu Mon Mon from Nate Neal on Vimeo. And here's a pretty fantastic piece of fan art drawn for Nate by fellow Mome contributor Eleanor Davis!
Daily OCD: 7/6/11
Today's Online Commentary & Diversions: • Review: "…Wilfred Santiago… has done something very extraordinary and that's create a graphic novel that will eventually stand the test of time. If there was ever a novel that every Latino/Latina (baseball fan or not), comic book fan, family or anyone who volunteers/works in nonprofit must own in their library, it's 21: The Story of Roberto Clemente. Am I exaggerating? No, being the comic book nerd that I am, I haven't been this moved from a novel since I read Frank Miller's Batman: The Dark Knight Returns…. While Roberto Clemente was a fantastic baseball…
The Quiet Rrriot: Spotlight on Stella Marrs
This coming Saturday, July 9th, the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery unveils our latest exhibit The Quiet Rrriot: Visual Artists from the Riot Grrrl Movement, celebrating the release of Megan Kelso's recently reissued Queen of the Black Black, and also spotlighting two other rad DIY ladies of the Northwest, Nikki McClure and Stella Marrs. We all know how awesome Megan is, but lemme introduce you to how equally-cool Nikki and Stella are, starting with the mysterious Ms. Stella Marrs. Anyone who's stepped into a bookstore in the last thirty years has surely seen her distinctive postcards in a rack near the…
The Duck Man
"I hope that the stories you have read in the Duck and Scrooge books have helped to give you a broader understanding of life, as well as entertainment. I always tried to write a story that I wouldn't mind buying myself. In my attempts to make comics worth 10¢ or 12¢ or 15¢ I seem to have produced some passages that were even worth remembering. If more of my readers grow up to sit in the Senate chamber than to sit in the gas chamber, I'll have been richly rewarded for trying to turn out a good product."
